Energy conversion system

ABSTRACT

An energy conversion system includes an energy converter, a cold generator, and a liquid water obtainer. The energy converter is configured to convert energy of a source from one form to another form and generate heat and water vapor. The cold generator is configured to generate cold using the heat generated by the energy converter. The liquid water obtainer is configured to condense the water vapor using the cold to obtain liquid water. Accordingly, the water vapor generated from the energy converter can be cooled efficiently. Therefore, efficiency in obtaining the liquid water can be improved compared with a case where the water vapor is cooled by open air.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

The present application is a continuation application of InternationalPatent Application No. PCT/JP2018/022900 filed on Jun. 15, 2018, whichdesignated the U.S. and claims the benefit of priority from JapanesePatent Application No. 2017-124570 filed on Jun. 26, 2017. The entiredisclosures of all of the above applications are incorporated herein byreference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to an energy conversion system thatgenerates water and heat during energy conversion.

BACKGROUND

Liquid water can be obtained from exhaust gas of a fuel cell and usedfor cooling a fuel cell system. The exhaust gas of the fuel cell can becooled by a condenser to condense water vapor contained in the exhaustgas and store the condensed water.

SUMMARY

In view of a higher output of a fuel cell in the future, larger volumeof water may be required to cool a fuel cell system. In contrast, sincethe exhaust gas from the fuel cell may have a higher temperature and alarger volume, cooling the exhaust gas from the fuel cell by open airmay be insufficient, and it may be difficult to obtain liquid water fromthe exhaust gas. Accordingly, the volume of the liquid water for coolingthe fuel cell system may become insufficient, and the user may berequired to refill water.

An energy conversion system includes an energy converter, a coldgenerator, and a liquid water obtainer. The energy converter isconfigured to convert energy of a source from one form to another formand generate heat and water vapor. The cold generator is configured togenerate cold using the heat generated by the energy converter. Theliquid water obtainer is configured to condense the water vapor usingthe cold to obtain liquid water.

According to the present disclosure, the cold is generated at the coldgenerator using the heat from the energy converter, and the water vaporgenerated from the energy converter is condensed by the cold to obtainthe liquid water. Accordingly, the water vapor discharged from theenergy converter can be cooled efficiently, and efficiency in obtainingthe liquid water can be improved compared with a case where the watervapor is cooled by open air.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an overall diagram illustrating a fuel cell system accordingto at least one embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 2 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an adsorption refrigeratoraccording to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 3 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an adsorption refrigeratoraccording to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure.

EMBODIMENTS

Hereinafter, embodiments for implementing the present disclosure will bedescribed referring to drawings. In each embodiment, portionscorresponding to the elements described in the preceding embodiments aredenoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant explanation may beomitted. When only a part of a configuration is described in anembodiment, another preceding embodiment may be applied to the otherparts of the configuration. In addition to the combinations of partsspecifically shown in the respective embodiments, the embodiments can bepartly combined even if not explicitly suggested, unless suchcombinations are contradictory.

First Embodiment

A first embodiment of the present disclosure will be described belowwith reference to FIGS. 1, 2. A fuel cell system 1 according to a firstembodiment is applied to a so-called fuel cell vehicle, which is a kindof electric vehicle, and supplies electric power to an electriccomponent such as an electric motor for vehicle travelling. The fuelcell system 1 may be an example of an energy conversion system.

As shown in FIG. 1, the fuel cell system 1 includes a fuel cell 2 thatgenerates electricity through an electrochemical reaction between air(oxidant gas) and hydrogen (fuel gas). The fuel cell 2 has a stackstructure in which multiple unit cells are stacked with each other. Eachof the unit cells generates electricity by receiving supply of hydrogenand air containing oxygen. In the fuel cell 2, water is generatedthrough electrochemical reaction.

An air supply passage 10 for supplying air to each unit cell and an airdischarge passage 11 for discharging air containing unreacted oxygenthat has not been used for the electrochemical reaction in the unitcells to the outside of the fuel cell 2 are connected to the fuel cell2. The discharged air from the fuel cell 2 contains water vapor of thegenerated water. The fuel cell 2 is an energy converter which convertshydrogen that is an energy source into an electrical energy that isanother form of energy and discharge heat and water vapor along with theenergy conversion.

A compressor 12 that pressurizes the air and supplies the air to thefuel cell 2 is provided in the air supply passage 10. The compressor 12may be an electric pump in which an electric motor drives an impellerhoused in a casing that defines a pump chamber, for example. A watercooled intercooler 13 that cools the air to be supplied to the fuel cell2 by cooling water is located in the air supply passage 10 anddownstream of the compressor 12.

A condenser 14 that cools the discharged air from the fuel cell 2 isprovided in the air discharge passage 11. The condenser 14 is a liquidwater obtainer that condenses water vapor contained in the discharge airfrom the fuel cell 2 to obtain condensed water (that is, liquid water).

Although not shown in FIG. 1, a hydrogen supply passage for supplyinghydrogen to each unit cell and a hydrogen discharge passage fordischarging unreacted hydrogen together with generated water andnitrogen in the unit cells to the outside are connected to the fuel cell2. A high-pressure hydrogen tank (not shown) is provided at the mostupstream part of the hydrogen supply passage.

The fuel cell system 1 includes a cooling water passage 20 thatcirculates the cooling water to supply the cooling water to the fuelcell 2. A cooling water bypass passage 21 that supplies the coolingwater to the intercooler 13 is branched from the cooling water passage20. A pump 22 that circulates the cooling water is provided in thecooling water passage 20.

A radiator 23 that exchanges heat between the cooling water and open airto release heat of the fuel cell 2 to the open air is provided in thecooling water passage 20. A sub-radiator 24 is provided in the coolingwater passage 20 in parallel with the radiator 23. The sub-radiator 24is a radiator that exchanges heat between the cooling water and the openair. The sub-radiator 24 is used supplementarily when the radiator 23alone is insufficient in cooling capacity, e.g. at a time of a high loadof the fuel cell 2 when a cooling capacity of the radiator 23 is notinsufficient. The radiator 23 may be an example of a fuel cell heatexchanger.

An adsorption refrigerator 30 that generates cold by adsorbing a workingmedium to and desorbing the working medium from an adsorbent is providedin the fuel cell system 1. The cold may be a medium at a lowtemperature. The adsorption refrigerator 30 is a cold generator thatgenerates cold using the exhaust heat of the fuel cell 2. The coldgenerated by the adsorption refrigerator 30 is used for cooling thedischarged gas from the fuel cell 2 by the condenser 14. The adsorptionrefrigerator 30 will be described later in detail.

In the condenser 14, the water vapor contained in the exhaust gas fromthe fuel cell 2 is condensed by the cold generated in the adsorptionrefrigerator 30. The condensed water generated in the condenser 14 isstored in a water storage 40.

A condensed water passage 41 is connected to the water storage 40. Acondensed water pump 42 that pressurizes and sends the condensed wateris disposed in the condensed water passage 41. The condensed water inthe water storage 40 is supplied to a first condensed water supplier 43and a second condensed water supplier 44. The first condensed watersupplier 43 may be an example of an inside heat exchanger. The secondcondensed water supplier 44 may be an example of a supplied air watersupplier.

The first condensed water supplier 43 is configured to supply thecondensed water to a surface of the radiator 23. The radiator 23 can becooled by supplying the condensed water to the surface of the radiator23 by the first condensed water supplier 43. The second condensed watersupplier 44 is configured to supply the condensed water to the air thatflows through the air supply passage 10 and is to be supplied to thefuel cell 2. Since the second condensed water supplier 44 supplies thecondensed water to the air to be supplied to the fuel cell 2, thesupplied air can be humidified and the fuel cell 2 can be cooled.

The adsorption refrigerator 30 is schematically shown in FIG. 2, adesorbing mode is shown on an upper side, and an adsorbing mode is shownon a lower side. As shown in FIG. 2, the adsorption refrigerator 30includes an adsorbing portion 31, an evaporating-condensing portion 32,a medium passage 33, and a suction pump 34. In the adsorptionrefrigerator 30, two sets of these components 31-34 are provided, andthe adsorbing mode and the desorbing mode are switched therebetween.

The adsorbing portion 31 is filled with the adsorbent capable ofadsorbing the working medium. Zeolite-based adsorbent, silica-basedadsorbent, activated carbon-based adsorbent, MOF-based adsorbent, metalhalide, adsorbent polymer, or the like can be used as the adsorbent.Zeolite-based adsorbent is used in the present embodiment. Thetemperature at which the working medium is desorbed from the adsorbentdepends on the combination of the adsorbent and the working medium.

It may be desirable that the adsorbent is mixed and sintered with metalmicro fins to be a composite. The metal micro fins function as a heatconduction member that transfers the heat of the cooling water to theadsorbent. As the metal micro fin, a sintered metal may be used, forexample. Sintered metal is a product made by heating metal powder ormetallic fibers having a good thermal conductivity to combine throughsintering without melting the material. Copper or copper alloy may beused as the metal powder or the metal fibers. The shape of the metalmicro fin is not particularly limited, but a dendritic shape may bepreferable to hold the adsorbent.

As the working medium adsorbed to and desorbed from the adsorbent,water, ammonia, alcohol, or a mixture thereof can be used. When amixture is used as the working medium, the adsorption refrigerator 30may work at a low temperature due to a freezing-point depression. Wateris used as the working medium in the present embodiment.

The working medium moves between the adsorbing portion 31 and theevaporating-condensing portion 32 through the medium passage 33. Theworking medium is condensed and evaporated in the evaporating-condensingportion 32.

The suction pump 34 is disposed in the medium passage 33. A mechanicalbooster pump, an ejector pump, or the like may be used as the suctionpump 34. The suction pump 34 of the present embodiment is capable ofreversing the suction direction. The suction pump 34 is a decompressorthat draws the working medium to decompress the adsorbing portion 31 orthe evaporating-condensing portion 32. The suction pump 34 may compressthe adsorbing portion 31 or the evaporating-condensing portion 32.

The adsorbing portion 31 and the evaporating-condensing portion 32 areconfigured to circulate the cooling water therethrough, and multiplecooling water circuits can be switched therebetween. In the adsorbingportion 31, (i) a cooling water circuit through which the cooling waterflowing from the fuel cell 2 flows into the adsorbing portion 31 and(ii) a cooling water circuit through which the cooling water circulatesbetween the sub-radiator 24 and the adsorbing portion 31 can be switchedtherebetween. In the evaporating-condensing portion 32, (i) a coolingwater circuit through which the cooling water circulates between thesub-radiator 24 and the evaporating-condensing portion 32 and (ii) acooling water circuit through which the cooling water circulates betweenthe condenser 14 and the evaporating-condensing portion 32 can beswitched therebetween.

In the cooling water circuit through which the cooling water flowingfrom the fuel cell 2 flows into the adsorbing portion 31, the coolingwater flowing out of the fuel cell 2 flows into the adsorbing portion 31before flowing into the radiator 23. When the cooling water circuit isformed between the sub-radiator 24 and the adsorbing portion 31 or theevaporating-condensing portion 32, the sub-radiator is fluidicallyseparated from the fuel cell 2 and the radiator 23 and connected to theadsorbing portion 31 or the evaporating-condensing portion 32.

Next, operations of the adsorption refrigerator 30 will be described.

In the desorbing mode shown on the upper side of FIG. 2, the coolingwater circuit through which the cooling water flowing from the fuel cell2 flows into the adsorbing portion 31 is formed. Accordingly, theadsorbing portion 31 is heated by the exhaust heat of the fuel cell 2,and the working medium desorbs from the adsorbent.

In the desorbing mode, the working medium is drawn by the suction pump34 from the adsorbing portion 31 to the evaporating-condensing portion32, and the adsorbing portion 31 is decompressed. Accordingly, thedesorption temperature of the working medium is lowered, and the workingmedium is surely desorbed even when the exhaust heat of the fuel cell 2is insufficient for desorption of the working medium.

The working medium in a gas form desorbed from the adsorbent in theadsorbing portion 31 moves to the evaporating-condensing portion 32through the medium passage 33. In the evaporating-condensing portion 32,the cooling water circuit through which the cooling water circulatesbetween the sub-radiator 24 and the evaporating-condensing portion 32 isformed. Accordingly, the working medium in a gas form that moved to theevaporating-condensing portion 32 is cooled and condensed by the coolingwater.

In the adsorbing mode shown on the lower side of FIG. 2, the coolingwater circuit through which the cooling water circulates between theevaporating-condensing portion 32 and the condenser 14 is formed.Accordingly, the heat of the exhaust gas from the fuel cell 2 istransferred to the evaporating-condensing portion 32 through the coolingwater, and the working medium in a liquid form is evaporated.

In the adsorbing mode, the working medium is drawn by the suction pump34 from the evaporating-condensing portion 32 to the adsorbing portion31, and the evaporating-condensing portion 32 is decompressed.Accordingly, evaporation of the working medium is enhanced.

In the evaporating-condensing portion 32, cold is generated by a latentheat generated when the working medium evaporates. The cold generated inthe evaporating-condensing portion 32 is transferred to the condenser 14through the cooling water, and the exhaust gas from the fuel cell 2 iscooled. In the condenser 14, the water vapor contained in the exhaustgas from the fuel cell 2 is condensed, and the condensed water is storedin the water storage 40.

The condensed water stored in the water storage 40 is sprayed onto thesurface of the radiator 23 by the first condensed water supplier 43, orsupplied to the air to be supplied to the fuel cell 2 by the secondcondensed water supplier 44 as required.

The working medium in a gas form evaporated in theevaporating-condensing portion 32 moves to the adsorbing portion 31through the medium passage 33 and is adsorbed to the adsorbent. In theadsorbing portion 31, the cooling water circuit through which thecooling water circulates between the sub-radiator 24 and the adsorbingportion 31 is formed. Accordingly, the heat generated when the workingmedium is adsorbed to the adsorbent can be released to an open air inthe sub-radiator 24 through the cooling water. Therefore, a temperatureincrease of the adsorbent can be suppressed, and adsorption of theworking medium to the adsorbent can be enhanced.

According to the present embodiment described above, the cold isgenerated in the adsorption refrigerator 30 using the exhaust heat ofthe fuel cell 2. And then, the exhaust gas from the fuel cell 2 iscooled by the cold generated in the adsorption refrigerator 30 tocondense the water vapor in the exhaust gas, and accordingly the liquidwater is obtained. Accordingly, the exhaust gas from the fuel cell 2 canbe cooled efficiently, and efficiency in obtaining the condensed watercan be improved compared with a case where the exhaust gas from the fuelcell 2 is cooled by an open air. As a result, a shortage of water storedin the water storage 40 can be avoided as much as possible, and it maybe possible to limit a user from having to refill water.

According to the present embodiment, the cold is generated in theadsorption refrigerator 30 using the exhaust heat of the fuel cell 2.Accordingly, a running cost for generating cold can be suppressedcompared with a case where the cold is generated by a refrigerationcycle or the like. Since a fuel cost of the fuel cell system 1 as in thepresent embodiment is comparatively high, and accordingly suppressingthe running cost for generating cold is particularly effective.

In the present embodiment, the adsorbing portion 31 is decompressed bythe suction pump 34 in the desorbing mode. Accordingly, the workingmedium is surely desorbed even when the exhaust heat of the fuel cell 2is insufficient to desorb the working medium from the adsorbent.

Second Embodiment

Next, a second embodiment of the present disclosure will be described.Description of the same parts as those in the first embodiment isomitted, and only different parts will be described.

As shown in FIG. 3, in a fuel cell system 1 of the second embodiment, aninside condenser 50 that exchanges heat between a cooling water and anair in a passenger compartment (i.e. inside air), and an outsidecondenser 51 that exchanges heat between the cooling water and airoutside the passenger compartment (i.e. outside air) are provided. Theinside condenser 50 may be an example of an inside heat exchanger. Theoutside condenser 51 may be an example of an outside heat exchanger.

The inside condenser 50 is configured to obtain condensed water (i.e.liquid water) from the inside air by condensing water vapor contained inthe inside air using cold generated in the adsorption refrigerator 30.The outside condenser 51 is configured to obtain condensed water (i.e.liquid water) from the outside air by condensing water vapor containedin the outside air.

In the adsorbing mode, a cooling water circuit in which the coolingwater circulates through the evaporating-condensing portion 32,condenser 14, inside condenser 50, and the outside condenser 51 isformed. In the adsorbing mode, the inside air is cooled at the insidecondenser 50 and the outside air is cooled at the outside condenser 51by the cold generated in the adsorption refrigerator 30. Accordingly,the water vapor contained in the inside air is condensed at the insidecondenser 50 to be the condensed water, and the water vapor contained inthe outside air is condensed at the outside condenser 51 to be thecondensed water. The condensed water (i.e. liquid water) generated atthe inside condenser 50 and the outside condenser 51 are stored in thewater storage 40.

According to the second embodiment described above, cold is generated inthe adsorption refrigerator 30 using the exhaust heat of the fuel cell2, and the condensed water is obtained by cooling the inside air and theoutside air using the cold to condense the water vapor in the inside airand the outside air. Accordingly, water is obtained from the inside airand the outside air in addition to the exhaust gas from the fuel cell 2,and the volume of the condensed water increases.

The present disclosure is not limited to the above embodiments but canbe modified in various manners as follows without departing from thespirit of the present disclosure. Further, means disclosed in the aboveembodiments may be appropriately combined within an enabling range.

In the above-described embodiments, the fuel cell 2 is used as anexample of the energy converter. However, a different energy convertersuch as an internal combustion engine may be used as long as itdischarges heat and water vapor along with energy conversion.

In the above-described embodiments, the suction pump 34 thatdecompresses adsorbing portion 31 in the desorbing mode is provided.However, since the desorption temperature of the working medium variesdepending on the combination of the adsorbent and the working medium,the suction pump 34 may be omitted when the exhaust heat of the fuelcell 2 is sufficient to desorb the working medium from the adsorbent.

In the above-described embodiments, the liquid water obtained from theexhaust gas from the fuel cell 2 by the cold generated using the exhaustheat of the fuel cell 2 is supplied to the radiator 23 and the air to besupplied to the fuel cell 2. However, the liquid water obtained from theexhaust gas from the fuel cell 2 may be used for different purposes.

In the above-described second embodiment, the cooling water flowing outof the evaporating-condensing portion 32 flows through, in order, thecondenser 14, the inside condenser 50, and the outside condenser 51 inthe adsorbing mode. However, the cooling water may circulate in adifferent order. Further, the cooling water flowing out of theevaporating-condensing portion 32 may flow through only one of theinside condenser 50 and the outside condenser 51.

In the above-described embodiments, the adsorption refrigerator 30 isused as an example of the cold generator that generates cold using theexhaust heat of the fuel cell 2. However, different types of coldgenerators may be used. For example as the cold generator, an absorptionrefrigerator that has an absorbent absorbing the working medium and athermoacoustic refrigerator that generates cold through energyconversion between thermal energy and sound energy using thermoacousticsmay be used.

Although the present disclosure has been described in accordance withthe embodiments, it is understood that the present disclosure is notlimited to the embodiments and structures disclosed therein. To thecontrary, the present disclosure is intended to cover variousmodification and equivalent arrangements. In addition, while the variouselements are shown in various combinations and configurations, which areexemplary, other combinations and configurations, including more, lessor only a single element, are also within the spirit and scope of thepresent disclosure.

What is claimed is:
 1. An energy conversion system comprising: an energyconverter that is configured to convert energy of a source from one formto another form and generate heat and water vapor; a cold generator thatis configured to generate cold using the heat generated by the energyconverter; and a liquid water obtainer that is configured to condensethe water vapor using the cold to obtain liquid water.
 2. The energyconversion system according to claim 1, wherein the energy converter isa fuel cell that generates a generated water through an electrochemicalreaction between oxygen contained in an air and hydrogen that aresupplied to the fuel cell, and the water vapor is the generated watercontained in the air discharged from the fuel cell.
 3. The energyconversion system according to claim 2, further comprising: a fuel cellheat exchanger that is configured to release the heat from the fuel cellto an open air; and a heat exchanger water supplier that is configuredto supply the liquid water obtained by the liquid water obtainer to thefuel cell heat exchanger to cool the fuel cell heat exchanger.
 4. Theenergy conversion system according to claim 2, further comprising: asupplied air water supplier that is configured to supply the liquidwater obtained by the liquid water obtainer to the air to be supplied tothe fuel cell.
 5. The energy conversion system according to claim 1,further comprising: at least one of an inside heat exchanger that isconfigured to cool an inside air by the cold and an outside heatexchanger that is configured to cool an outside air by the cold, whereinthe inside heat exchanger is configured to condense water vaporcontained in the inside air by the cold to obtain liquid water, and theoutside heat exchanger is configured to condense water vapor containedin the outside air by the cold to obtain liquid water.
 6. The energyconversion system according to claim 1, wherein the cold generator is anadsorption refrigerator that: has an adsorbent selectively adsorbing anddesorbing a working medium; and generates the cold by a latent heat ofvaporization of the working medium.
 7. The energy conversion systemaccording to claim 6, wherein the adsorption refrigerator includes: anadsorbing portion in which the adsorbent selectively adsorbs and desorbsthe working medium; a condensing portion that is configured to condensethe working medium desorbed from the adsorbent; and a decompressor thatis disposed between the adsorbing portion and the condensing portion andis configured to decompress an inside of the adsorbing portion when theadsorbent desorbs the working medium.
 8. A method comprising: desorbing,during a desorbing mode, a first medium in a gas form from an adsorbentby heating the first medium using heat generated from an energyconverter, the energy converter configured to generate the heat andwater vapor; condensing, during the desorbing mode, the first mediumdesorbed from the adsorbent into a liquid form by cooling the firstmedium using a second medium that was cooled at a first heat exchanger;cooling, during an adsorbing mode, a third medium by a latent heatgenerated when the first medium in the liquid form evaporates throughheat exchange with the third medium; condensing, during the adsorbingmode, the water vapor generated from the energy converter to obtainliquid water by cooling the water vapor at a second heat exchanger usingthe third medium that was cooled by the latent heat of the first medium;and adsorbing, during the adsorbing mode, the first medium that wasevaporated into the gas form by the adsorbent.
 9. The method accordingto claim 8, wherein the first medium is adsorbed by, and desorbed from,the adsorbent in a first container, the first medium is condensed, andevaporated, in a second container, and the method further comprisesdecompressing the second container by a pump to enhance evaporation ofthe first medium during the adsorbing mode.
 10. The method according toclaim 8, wherein the first medium is adsorbed by, and desorbed from, theadsorbent in a first container, the first medium is condensed, andevaporated, in a second container, and the method further comprisescompressing the second container by a pump to enhance condensation ofthe first medium during the desorption mode.
 11. The method according toclaim 8, further comprising: cooling, during the adsorption mode, theadsorbent using the second medium cooled by the first heat exchanger toenhance adsorption of the first medium to the adsorbent.
 12. The methodaccording to claim 8, further comprising: cooling the energy converterusing the liquid water.